Flames say team did research before offer sheet O'Reilly

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CALGARY, Alberta -- Calgary Flames general manager Jay Feaster says the team performed due diligence before signing Colorado Avalanche forward Ryan O'Reilly to an offer sheet.

The Flames released a statement Friday after Rogers Sportsnet in Canada reported that O'Reilly would have been placed on waivers if the Avalanche hadn't matched Calgary's offer sheet on Thursday.

Had the deal played out that way, the Flames would have lost a first- and third-round draft pick and O'Reilly, who likely would have been snapped up by another team.

That would have been unacceptable for any team, but particularly costly to an aging Flames team struggling to get into the Western Conference playoff race.

According to the NHL's collective bargaining agreement, O'Reilly would have had to clear waivers because he played two games in Russia's KHL after the start of the NHL regular season.

But Feaster said Friday that his club did research before presenting the offer sheet to O'Reilly, who led the Avalanche with 55 points last season.

"Prior to tendering the offer sheet for Ryan O'Reilly we, as a hockey operations department, examined whether there were any impediments to our successfully securing the services of the player including, but not limited to, his having played in the KHL after the start of the current NHL season," Feaster said.

At issue is Article 13.23 of the collective bargaining agreement, which states that a professional or former professional player that played in a league outside North America after the start of the NHL regular season must clear waivers before playing in the NHL that same season.

An amendment to that article was made in the latest agreement that ended the long lockout, allowing teams that re-sign their restricted free agents to avoid the waiver process. Therefore, Colorado won't risk losing O'Reilly by matching the Flames' offer sheet.

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